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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DARWIN A. GREENE, OF NE7 YORK, N. Y., ADMINISTRATOR OF E. DAVISLDECEASED.

MACHINE FCR SPLITTING FIRE/VOGD.

Speccaton of Letters Patent No. 24,735, dated July 12, 1859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that ELIAS Davis, deceased, of the city, county, and State of New York, has invented new and useful Improvements on food-Splitting Machines; and I, DAI:- wmv A. Gnnnxnhis administrator, of the city, county, and State aforesaid, do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure I represents a longitudinal elevation of the machine. Fig. II a longitudinal section made in a plane shown by the red line S S in Fig. III. Fig. III represents the plan. Fig. IV an end elevation. Fig. V a transverse section in a plane shown by the red line S S in Fig. II. Figs. VI, VII andVIII are elevation, end view and plan in detail of a portion of the machine and Fig. IX is an elevation in detail of another portion of the same.

The same letters of reference refer to like parts in all the figures.

The nature of the invention of the improved wood splitting machine consists of a set of duplicate, horizontal acting knives, operating upon the wood, while resting against two vertical stationary plates, which are connected together by four bolts, also forming guides for the reciprocating crossheads, having the knives secured to them; the wood before and after the operation of splitting is brought forward by two endless belts, which are advanced by ratchets, rods and levers, operated by the crossheads while in motion. The whole is arranged upon a strong wooden framing; a crankshaft fitted to bearings upon the central part of the same, gives motion to the crossheads by means of two connecting rods.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use the invention, I will describe its construction and operation.

A, A, A, A are four vertical posts, and B B two horizontal beams; mortised and scoured to the vertical posts C C, are two crosspieces of timber, which connect the vertical po'sts; at the side of each vertical post A, and projecting beyond the main framing, are timbers D D, supporting at each end the timbers E F F g upon the outside timbers E E rest the guards H H, and also upon part of the inside timbers F F; these are firmly secured to the framing, and also to the central plates G G of wood or iron, which latter are provided. with holes, to pass the four bolts S S S S, which are pro vided with nuts on both ends. A brace T is bolted to the top of each central plate Gr, extending to the top of the vertical posts A, being bolted to them.

The bearings L L are fitted and secured to the top of the framing B B and are bored and fitted to the journals of the crankshaft K K; the crankshaft is turned at one end, to receive the loose and fast pulleys P and Q, and at the other end, to receive the ilywheel J. The crankpin at the center of the shaft is turned to receive the ends of the connecting rods M and N, the other ends of which are fitted to the crossheads O O, in which they vibrate upon pins n a. The crossheads O, O are provided at top and bottom with semicircular grooves, sliding upon the circular rods S, S, S, S.

The slabbing knife a, is secured to the side of each crosshead, by four screw-bolts w, fr,

zr, a: as represented more clearly in Figs. VI, VII and VIII, the five smaller knives b, c, d, e, f not projecting as much as the knife a, have a projection at the end, whereby they are held in a corresponding groove within the crosshead, and are at their ends fitted into the latter; the end of the slabbing knife a, as well as an additional plate e, which is bolted to the crosshead with four bolts y y y y, press upon the sides of the smaller knives, holding them firmly into their places; the peculiar position of the knives is as follows: The slabbing knife a, the first one acting upon the wood, in the operation of splitting, is the longest, projecting from the crosshead '0; upon its face and at right angles with the knife a, are fitted the knives b, CZ, f and beyond these, a space being left between them and the following knives, are secured the knives c and e the knives Z), f and c, `e are inclined with their cutting edges toward each other, and the central knife el projects sufficiently in advance of the other to allow its cutting edge to enter the wood up to the thickness of the blade before the knives b, c, e, 7, come in Contact with the wood. Metal plates t t in front of each crosshead are secured to the framing A A, and cross-timber C; they are provided with holes to allow the knives b c 0l e f to pass through them; the movable plates g Ag, beside t-he stationary plates t, are secured to the end of square rods 7L It; spiral springs z' z' bearing against the framing A, and the back of the plates g the square rod h passes through part ofg t catch 71, is secured to the end of the rod. A vertical rod 7c, secured in each crosshead O, in the extreme backward movement of the latter, bears against the catch h. Between the horizontal framing H F, H F, move the endless belts R R at both ends of the machine; each belt is supported, and kept in tension b y two rollers s s, secured by pins to the framing, and are fittedv to rotate freely; the roller at the end of the belt which receives the wood to be split, is se- Wcured to its pinm, which has its bearing in the framing; the pin 11 projecting inside and beyond the framing, receives first the rocking arm p, fitted to vibrate freely, and next a ratchet wheel g, secured by a nut to the end of the pin 11,' the top of the rocking arm p, receives the end of the rod n, which forms a loop, or is bent to enter the hole in arm p; the other end of the rod n is bent to fit the end of lever m, the fulcrum of the latter being fitted upon a pin secured to the framing; the opposite end of lever m, receives the rod Z, bent to fit the hole in the end of the lever, and the other end of rod Z forms an elongated loop, which passes around the vertical rod c, secured to the crosshead O; a catch o operates the ratchet wheel g, is secured to the rocker p.

Its operation is as follows: The belt operating the,.machine being passed from the loose pulley P upon the fast pulley Q, revolves the crankshaft K, giving motion to the connecting rods M and N, and horizontal vibratory motion to the crossheadsv O O, and the knives a, c, CZ, e, f secured to each of the latter; the crossheads sliding between the rods s s s s. The wood to be split, previously cut into proper lengths, is laid upon the endless belts R R, and by means of ratchet wheel g and catch o, actuated by the rods n, Z and lever m, the wood is gradually advanced toward the slabbing and splitting knives a, b, c, d, c, f; the advance of the belt R, occurs at the backward movement of the knives, and after the knives have receded behind the stationary plates t, leaving the wood atliberty, and previous to the advance of the belt R, also the movable plate g is drawn back by means ofv catch lz and he framing, and arod It, which however during the return movementof. the-crosshead O, and before the knives operate upon the wood, is allowed, by means of spring i, to press firmly against the wood, which is behind that portion of wood, to be acted upon by the knives.

the wood, before the operation of splittingV and after the advance of the belt R is completed. During the operation of splitting the wood presses against the plates G G at Y each end of the machine, andas the knives are receding,while there is yet a tendency of the wood to adhere to the knives a, b, c, d, e, f, the wood'presses against the stationary plate t; after the operation of cutting the wood, it passes on upon the endless belts R R, and between the vertical plates H H,

at the end of which it leaves the machine.

The operation of the knives while slabbing and splitting the wood is as follows: The slabbing knife a having partly entered the wood, the central knife d is forced in, up to the thickness of its blade, to spread the wood when the knives Z) and f, are allowed to enter; knives e and c at the same time acting upon a portion of the wood already divided 4or split by the knives a, b, d and f; however before the action of the knives e and c takes place upon the same portion of wood, previously acted upon by the other knives, crosshead O recedes, the wood is advanced with the belt R, and a new portion of wood is acted upon by knives a, I), CZ and I claim- The slabbing knife a, and splitting knives Z2, c, cl, e, f as secured to one crosshead O acting simultaneously at the forward movement of the latter, substantially as described and for the purpose set forth.

DARVIN A. GREENE, Administrator of Elias Danis, deceased. Witnesses GEORGE ALLIsoN, H. LAWSON. 

